1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an inkjet printing apparatus and an ink cartridge mounting unit connected to this apparatus.
2. Related Art
In the related art, an inkjet unit (inkjet printing apparatus) for performing printing using ink supplied from a cradle unit (ink cartridge mounting unit) is known (JP-A-2006-272874, for example).
That is to say, the inkjet unit and the cradle unit can be connected to each other. Ink is supplied from the cradle unit to the inkjet unit to which the cradle unit is connected.
Incidentally, the inkjet unit has a cartridge mounting portion (ink cartridge mounting portion), and an ink container (first ink cartridge) is mounted in the cartridge mounting portion. When an ink supply needle of the cradle unit is inserted into the ink container, ink is supplied from an ink tank (second ink cartridge) included in the cradle unit to the ink container.
Accordingly, a dedicated configuration is necessary to connect the cradle unit and the inkjet unit. That is to say, in order to perform printing using the inkjet unit, the ink container has to be mounted in the cartridge mounting portion. Furthermore, in order to connect the cradle unit to the inkjet unit, an ink injection opening into which the ink supply needle can be inserted has to be formed in the ink container. Accordingly, those containers other than dedicated ink containers cannot be mounted in the cartridge mounting portion.
This sort of problem is not limited to inkjet units to which ink is supplied from cradle units, and generally the same issue arises in inkjet printing apparatuses to which ink is supplied from ink cartridge mounting units and the ink cartridge mounting units connected to these apparatuses.